Opinion: Reader opinion: Democracy in Egypt at any cost?
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In Wednesday’s Opinion pages, Shadi Hamid, director of research at the Brookings Doha Center and a fellow at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution, delves into America’s ‘Islamist dilemma.’ Even though the White House says it’s open to the Muslim Brotherhood’s rise to power, there are signs of trepidation. ‘Once again, the U.S. and its allies find themselves embracing the idea of democracy but not necessarily its outcomes,’ he writes.
How will this affect our relationship with Israel? Will Egypt still be an ally? Will this prevent American leadership? For readers taking to our comment boards, the biggest concern is unadulterated fear of Muslims. Here’s one such comment:
‘If our President doesn’t watch it, the Muslim Brother, a radical, extremist Sharia Law group, may take power and/or have a role in a new government. Women’s rights will become non-existent, and many other negative actions will take place. The MSNBC crowd is already touting Obama as the savior of the people of Egypt.....speaking way too soon.’ -- tommythek50
Why do we really fear Muslims, though? One commenter attempts to inject the conversation with a dose of reason:
‘I urge everyone to take the time to do a little research on the Muslim Brotherhood. After you do this, make up your own mind on what the Muslim Brotherhood stands for, what policies the Muslim Brotherhood is likely to advance in Egypt and elsewhere, how the Muslim Brotherhood views the United State in general and its policies toward the Muslim world in particular, and so forth. If you do what I have suggested, you will be able to evaluate the quality of this op ed, the validity of its opinions, and so forth.’ -- jeff1947
On the other side of the debate, we have readers such as ‘Dave in NoHo’ saying we ought to support democracy even if it makes us feel uncomfortable:
‘Let’s remember, democracy is messy. In the 1790s, George Washington and Alexander Hamilton believed that ‘democracy’ was code for accepting the excesses of the French Revolution. As for a Muslim influence in government in a country that’s mostly Muslim, if it’s what the Egyptians want, a commitment to democracy says they should be able to have that. In this country, democracy has given us an uncomfortably Fundamentalist Christian House of Representatives -- if you don’t like the idea of Muslim influence, shouldn’t you be worried about the House taking a fundamentalist view of abortion and trying to outlaw it?’ -- Dave in NoHo
Hamid concludes his Op-Ed article saying that America will always have an ‘Islamist dilemma.’
‘But it can be managed,’ he writes. ‘Egypt is a good place to start trying.’
Do you agree?
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-- Alexandra Le Tellier
